Cloud storage service is popular nowadays for providing online storage space to host user files. Users of a cloud storage service can upload files to the cloud and later access the uploaded files over the internet from the same or a different computing device.
A cloud storage service can provide client applications for different types of computing devices. A user can use a computing device to download and install a client application of the cloud storage service at the device. The client application can enable the user to drop any file into a designated folder. Any file in the designated folder is synchronized with the cloud storage service. The user can then use the device or other devices having a client application installed to access these synchronized files stored at the cloud storage service. The cloud storage service can further provide a web interface. Through the web interface, a user can upload files to and download files from the cloud storage service, without the need of installing the client application.
The user needs to manually decide which files to be synchronized by dropping the files into the designated folder or drive. The designated folders or drives are generally treated as external folders or drives by the operating systems of the computing devices. The operating systems do not rely on the designated folders or drives to perform, and do not utilize the designated folders or drives to perform any operating system related tasks.